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Psychophysiological Assessment (psychophysiological + assessment)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Psychology	50%

Selected Abstracts

Psychophysiological Assessment of Sexual Function in Women After Radiotherapy and Total Mesorectal Excision for Rectal Cancer: A Pilot Study on Four Patients

THE JOURNAL OF SEXUAL MEDICINE, Issue 4 2009
Stephanie O. Breukink MD
ABSTRACT Introduction., The potential contribution of psychological and anatomical changes to sexual dysfunction in female patients following short-term preoperative radiotherapy (5 × 5 Gy) and total mesorectal excision (TME) is not clear. Aim., In this study we assessed female sexual dysfunction in patients who underwent radiotherapy and TME for rectal cancer. Main Outcome Measures., Genital arousal was assessed using vaginal videoplethysmography. Methods., Sexual functioning was examined in four patients who had rectal cancer and underwent radiotherapy and TME. All investigations were done at least 15 months after treatment. The results were compared with an age-matched group of 18 healthy women. Results., The patients and healthy controls showed comparable changes in vaginal vasocongestion during sexual arousal, though three out of four patients showed a lower mean spectral tension (MST) of the vaginal pulse compared with healthy controls. Subjective sexual arousal was equivalent between the two groups. Conclusions., In this study the changes of genital and subjective sexual arousal after erotic stimulus condition between patients and healthy controls were not different, though lower MST of the vaginal pulse was found in three out of four patients compared with healthy women. Additional work, however, must be performed to clarify the mechanisms of sexual dysfunction following treatment of rectal cancer. Breukink SO, Wouda JC, van der Werf - Eldering MJ, van de Wiel HBM, Bouma EMC, Pierie JP- EN, Wiggers T, Meijerink JWJHJ, and Weijmar Schultz WCM. Psychophysiological assessment of sexual function in women after radiotherapy and total mesorectal excision for rectal cancer: A pilot study on four patients. J Sex Med **;**:**,**. [source]

Psychophysiological reactivity in female sexual abuse survivors

JOURNAL OF TRAUMATIC STRESS, Issue 4 2001
Annmarie McDonagh-Coyle
Abstract This study examined psychophysiological reactivity in 37 female childhood sexual abuse (CSA) survivors. After assessment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), psychiatric comorbidity, and trauma history, we conducted a psychophysiological assessment of forehead muscle tension, electrodermal activity, and heart rate during a mental arithmetic task and 4 script-driven imagery tasks (neutral, consensual sex, pleasant, and trauma). PTSD symptom severity correlated positively with psychophysiologic changes and negative emotions during the trauma imagery task. During mental arithmetic, PTSD symptom severity correlated negatively with autonomic changes and positively with negative emotions. These results extend earlier PTSD research showing trauma-specific increased psychophysiological reactivity related to CSA in women with PTSD. They further suggest a negative association between PTSD severity and autonomic reactions to mental arithmetic. [source]

Activation of the prefrontal cortex to trauma-related stimuli measured by near-infrared spectroscopy in posttraumatic stress disorder due to terrorism

PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 4 2003
Koji Matsuo
Abstract To develop a noninvasive method for psychophysiological assessment of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), 34 victims of the Tokyo Subway Sarin Attack in 1995 including 8 diagnosed as PTSD and 12 controls were examined by a multichannel near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) system. Hemodynamic response in the prefrontal cortex was monitored during the presentation of trauma-related and control stimuli by video images. Skin conductance response (SCR) was also examined. Oxygenated hemoglobin significantly increased during the trauma-related image in the victims with or without PTSD. Deoxygenated hemoglobin significantly decreased only in victims with PTSD. No significant alteration was found in controls. Significantly enhanced SCR was also observed in the victims with PTSD during trauma-related stimuli. The findings suggest that measurement of cerebral hemodynamic response by NIRS is useful for psychophysiological assessment of PTSD. [source]